It seems there may be similar barriers to FATCA in Japan as there are in Canada. “Asking such a delicate and private question is not something Japanese financial institutions could ask to their customers.” That “delicate and private question” is whether a customer is a US person.

You have to love the Japanese. They talk about “delicate and private question” while a lawyer in Arrow’s Canadian article calls asking the question a “landmine.” Yet, aren’t the Japanese negotiating an IGA?

In any case, Happy Thanksgiving, Canada. Hopefully, long before next Thanksgiving, we will be able to give thanks for the Canadian government protecting us from Uncle Sam’s Long Arm.